Students bow to the combat class

I have been teaching Tai Chi Chih classes in a large fitness center in Atascadero for many years. Our class was “assigned” to the group fitness room and scheduled back-to-back with high impact and “body combat” classes! Imagine the beautiful chi created by 10 to 20 people flowing freely in the room for an hour. Then imagine, while still grounding the chi and returning gently to our space, the door slamming open and the next group of fitness enthusiasts bursting in, talking loudly, pushing our Tai Chi Chih students out of the way -all the while wearing combat fatigues! The following poem was written by one of my students as she reflected on the situation.

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Update: Since the writing of this poem our class has moved to a more peaceful room. We continue to practice and remember our combatant friends. Although the interruption of the peaceful environment that had been created by our Tai Chi Chih was frustrating, I always enjoyed watching the combatants walk into the room and unknowingly walk around the circle of energy that our class had created. As I watched, it would sometimes be two or three minutes before anyone from the next class would “step into” our peaceful circle! Our peaceful presence does make a difference in the world!